The present invention relates to a cutting board for cutting food products, and a method of fabricating the same.
Cutting boards of the described type typically comprise a block of hardwood, or a rigid sheet of hard plastic or other similar material. The food product is placed upon the cutting board, and the knife or cleaver is drawn through the product while the product is held by hand or some other instrument. When the knife or cleaver becomes dull, it is sharpened on a separate sharpening stone or tool.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,860,641 discloses an improved cutting board, which comprises a generally flat support surface with a plurality of cone shaped inserts formed of an abrasive material and mounted on the support surface. The inserts are mounted in a side by side arrangement which defines a plurality of parallel rows of inserts which define channels along which the knife blade may be drawn, such that the knife blade is sharpened on both sides by contact with the inclined surfaces of the inserts of adjacent rows.
The present invention is directed to an improved construction of a cutting board of the type described in the above referenced patent, and to an improved method of fabricating the same.
The above objects and advantages of the present invention are achieved by the provision of a cutting board of the type described in the above referenced patent, and wherein the inserts are separately formed of an abrasive material and are mounted in openings formed in the support. The inserts have inclined peripheral surfaces, and the openings are configured to closely receive a bottom portion of the inserts therein, and the inserts are preferably held in place by a plug or by an epoxy resin which is fixed in a cavity or space which underlies the bases of the inserts.
To fabricate the board in accordance with one preferred embodiment of the invention, a cavity is formed in the under surface of the support and so as to terminate short of the top surface and thereby define a generally flat downwardly facing internal shoulder and a bridge formed between the shoulder and the top surface. The openings are then formed through the bridge, and the inserts are then placed in the openings. Finally, to secure the inserts in the desired position, a plug is fixed within the cavity so as to underlie the inserts.
In another preferred embodiment, conical openings are drilled completely through the support, and cone shaped inserts are inserted into the openings so that the bases of the inserts are disposed above the under surface of the support to leave a space therebetween. The space is then filled with an epoxy resin or the like, which upon hardening, locks the inserts in place.